Sungrow, EVE Energy Storage and Saft were amongst the big names exhibiting new battery energy storage products at RE+ in California last week.
Sungrow, EVE, Hithium, Trina Storage, AlphaESS and Saft
Around 27,000 people attended last week’s RE+ 2022 event in California, marking the return of the Solar Power International and Energy Storage International events for the first time in three years, under a new unified brand name.
Enjoy 12 months of exclusive analysis
- Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
- In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
- Annual digital subscription to the PV Tech Power journal
- Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual
Or continue reading this article for free
With more than 750 exhibitors across both strands, many were presenting new products, or bringing products launched in the US for their North American debuts.
Of course, we’re not able to present you details on everything that was launched at the show, hosted at a stone’s throw away from Disneyland at Anaheim Convention Center. Nonetheless, here are a few examples from leading industry players.
Sungrow
Solar PV inverter and energy storage system (ESS) solutions provider Sungrow brought its liquid cooled large industrial and utility-scale battery storage systems to the show.
Sungrow’s PowerStack 500kWh product is aimed at the commercial and industrial (C&I) segment, while PowerTitan is a utility-scale system available in 2.2MWh to 2.7MWh configurations.
Both are equipped with a cluster controller which can charge and discharge battery racks individually, which the manufacturer claimed increases overall performance, they also feature automatic state-of-charge (SoC) calibration and automated coolant refuelling.
EVE Energy Storage
EVE Energy Storage, a subsidiary of Chinese lithium battery manufacturer EVE Energy, made its North American debut at RE+ 2022.
The company showcased products for utility-scale, residential and telecommunications applications, including a 1500V liquid cooling system that EVE claimed enables extended cycle life, higher energy density and increases self-consumption of onsite generated power and energy utilisation efficiency.
EVE Energy Storage’s products cover the full gamut from cell to pack to system and battery management system (BMS). The company also presented its new prismatic lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cells and cylindrical battery cells, among other products, at the show.
Hithium
Another Chinese battery maker exhibiting prismatic and cylindrical cells, Xiamen Hithium Energy Storage Technology (Hithium), launched a new 300Ah prismatic cell and a 46mm cylindrical cell.
Hithium focuses primarily on lithium iron phosphate (LFP). The company claimed the new prismatic cell won’t experience capacity fade over the first three years of operation, equivalent to 1,000 daily cycles. It has a total expected 12,000 cycle lifetime and a claimed efficiency of 95%.
Meanwhile the cylindrical cell has a “revolutionary shape” that would be typically 10% cheaper than prismatic form factor cells and has a high explosion-proof rating. Both products will be available from the first quarter of 2023.
Hithium, which was only founded in 2019, is targeting 135GWh of annual battery production capacity by 2025.
Trina Storage
Trina Storage, the energy storage arm of solar PV firm Trina Solar which launched last year, launched the New Elementa battery energy storage system for the US market.
The battery storage unit uses the company’s in-house lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) battery cells and battery management system (BMS). Similar to Hithium, it claimed a battery lifetime of over 12,000 cycles.
“Trina Storage views the US as a strategic market. The BESS industry in the US and North America is poised for substantial growth in the coming years,” said Terry Chen, head of Overseas Energy Storage Business.
AlphaESS
Energy storage solutions firm AlphaESS launched a residential energy storage system for the US market, following the launch of its new US subsidiary and head office in Colorado earlier in September.
The SMILE-SP and SPB series are available with AC and DC coupling, with a 7.6/9.6kW hybrid inverter and a standard 8.2kWh battery pack which can support max 11.5kWp/15kWp PV input and is expandable to 49.2kWh. The systems, which use lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery cells, are suited for retrofitting as well grid forming function fits for all PV inverter brands.
Products showcased at RE+ included the Almighty Knight SMILE-G3 (5kW/10.1-60.5kWh), all-in-one system SMILE-B3-PLUS (3kW/5.04-30kWh), the Three-Phase Warrior SMILE-T10-HV (10kW/8.2- 49.2kWh) and new portable power stations – BlackBee 1000 and 2000 (1-1.6kW/1-2kWh).
Saft
Oil and gas major TotalEnergies’ energy storage subsidiary Saft presented its new generation Intensium Shift utility-scale energy storage system.
The 3MWh unit is a scaleable building block which can be installed with power conversion equipment with a footprint 50% lower than the previous model, while also halving site-related activities, the company claimed.
The product also uses lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cells and will be available from mid-2023, with a duration on offer between two to eight hours.
The company has manufacturing hubs in France, US and China from where the product will be shipped.
